Jenkinsfile Validator Skill Use this skill to validate Jenkins pipelines and shared libraries with local scripts first, then optionally enrich findings with plugin documentation. Trigger Phrases Use this skill when requests look like: "Validate this Jenkinsfile" "Check this pipeline for security issues" "Lint my Declarative/Scripted pipeline" "Why is this Jenkins pipeline failing syntax checks?" "Validate vars/ .groovy or src// .groovy shared library files" Scope This skill validates: Declarative pipelines ( pipeline { ... } ) Scripted pipelines ( node { ... } and Groovy-style pipelines) Shared library files ( vars/*.groovy , src//.groovy ) Hardcoded credential patterns Pipeline best practices and maintainability signals Prerequisites Run commands from repository root unless noted. Required tools bash grep sed awk head wc find (needed for shared-library directory scans) Recommended tools jq (optional; improves JSON-heavy troubleshooting workflows) Script prerequisites Scripts live in devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator/scripts/ Main orchestrator can run child scripts even if +x is missing (it uses bash fallback) If you want direct execution ( ./script.sh ), make scripts executable: chmod +x devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator/scripts/.sh Preflight check (recommended) SKILL_DIR = "devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator" command -v bash grep sed awk head wc find
/dev/null && echo "required tools: ok" || echo "required tools: missing" command -v jq
/dev/null && echo "jq: installed (optional)" || echo "jq: missing (optional)" [ -d " $SKILL_DIR /scripts" ] && echo "scripts dir: ok" || echo "scripts dir: missing" [ -f " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_jenkinsfile.sh" ] && echo "main validator: ok" || echo "main validator: missing" Quick Start (Normalized Paths) Use a single base path variable to avoid path ambiguity. SKILL_DIR = "devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator" TARGET_JENKINSFILE = "Jenkinsfile"
Full validation (recommended)
bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_jenkinsfile.sh" " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE " Common options SKILL_DIR = "devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator" TARGET_JENKINSFILE = "Jenkinsfile" bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_jenkinsfile.sh" --syntax-only " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE " bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_jenkinsfile.sh" --security-only " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE " bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_jenkinsfile.sh" --best-practices " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE " bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_jenkinsfile.sh" --no-security " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE " bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_jenkinsfile.sh" --no-best-practices " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE " bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_jenkinsfile.sh" --strict " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE " bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_jenkinsfile.sh" --assume-declarative " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE " bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_jenkinsfile.sh" --assume-scripted " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE " Shared library validation SKILL_DIR = "devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator" bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_shared_library.sh" vars/myStep.groovy bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_shared_library.sh" vars/ bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_shared_library.sh" src/ bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_shared_library.sh" /path/to/shared-library Regression and local CI checks SKILL_DIR = "devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator" bash " $SKILL_DIR /tests/run_local_ci.sh" run_local_ci.sh is the supported local/CI entrypoint for regression coverage. It runs: bash -n syntax checks for all scripts/.sh and tests/.sh files tests/test_validate_jenkinsfile.sh regression scenarios Deterministic Validation Flow 1) Detect pipeline type pipeline { => Declarative validator node (...) or node { => Scripted validator Unknown => fails closed by default ( ERROR [TypeDetection] ) Override intentionally ambiguous files with --assume-declarative or --assume-scripted 2) Run syntax validation Declarative: validate_declarative.sh Scripted: validate_scripted.sh 3) Run security scan common_validation.sh check_credentials 4) Run best practices check best_practices.sh 5) Aggregate and return final status Unified summary with pass/fail per phase and final exit code 6) Run regression suite after script changes bash tests/run_local_ci.sh Intended for both local pre-commit checks and CI job wiring Individual Script Commands (Advanced) SKILL_DIR = "devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator" TARGET_JENKINSFILE = "Jenkinsfile"
Type detection
bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/common_validation.sh" detect_type " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE "
Syntax-only by type
bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_declarative.sh" " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE " bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_scripted.sh" " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE "
Security-only
bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/common_validation.sh" check_credentials " $TARGET_JENKINSFILE "
Best-practices-only
- bash
- "
- $SKILL_DIR
- /scripts/best_practices.sh"
- "
- $TARGET_JENKINSFILE
- "
- Exit Code and Log Interpretation
- Main orchestrator:
- validate_jenkinsfile.sh
- 0
-
- Validation passed
- 1
-
- Validation failed (syntax/security errors, or warnings in
- --strict
- mode)
- 2
- Usage or environment error (bad args, missing file, missing required tools)
Sub-scripts
validate_declarative.sh
:
0
pass (errors=0),
1
usage/file/validation failure
validate_scripted.sh
:
0
pass (errors=0),
1
usage/file/validation failure
common_validation.sh check_credentials
:
0
no credential errors,
1
credential issues found
validate_shared_library.sh
:
0
pass,
1
validation errors found,
2
invalid input target
best_practices.sh
:
1
only for usage/file errors; content findings are reported in logs and score output
Log severity patterns
ERROR [Line N]: ...
=> must fix
WARNING [Line N]: ...
=> should review
INFO [Line N]: ...
=> optional improvement
Summary banners (
VALIDATION PASSED/FAILED
) determine final interpretation quickly
Practical interpretation rules
For CI gating, rely on main orchestrator exit code.
Use
--strict
when warnings should fail pipelines.
When
best_practices.sh
is run standalone, read report sections (
CRITICAL ISSUES
,
IMPROVEMENTS RECOMMENDED
, score); do not rely only on exit code.
Fallback Behavior
Missing optional tools
If
jq
is missing, continue validation; treat as non-blocking.
Non-executable child scripts
Main orchestrator warns and falls back to
bash <script>
execution.
Missing child scripts
Main orchestrator reports runner error and returns failure for that phase.
Unknown plugin steps
Use this order:
Check local reference:
devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator/references/common_plugins.md
Context7 lookup:
mcp__context7__resolve-library-id
with query like
jenkinsci
-plugin mcp__context7__query-docs for usage and parameters Web fallback: plugins.jenkins.io and official Jenkins docs Offline/air-gapped mode Run all local validators. If plugin docs cannot be fetched, report: "Plugin docs lookup skipped due to environment constraints; local validation only." Plugin Documentation Lookup Workflow When plugin-specific validation is requested: Identify unknown steps from Jenkinsfile or validator logs. Check references/common_plugins.md first. If missing, use Context7 ( resolve-library-id then query-docs ). If still missing, use web search against official plugin index/docs. Return required parameters, optional parameters, version-sensitive notes, and security guidance. References Local references: devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator/references/declarative_syntax.md devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator/references/scripted_syntax.md devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator/references/best_practices.md devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator/references/common_plugins.md External references: Jenkins Pipeline Syntax Pipeline Development Tools Pipeline Best Practices Jenkins Plugins Reporting Template Use this structure in validation responses: Validation Target: Pipeline Type: - WARNING [Line Y]: - INFO [Line Z]: Phase Results: - Syntax: 2. Example Flows Example 1: Full Jenkinsfile validation SKILL_DIR = "devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator" bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_jenkinsfile.sh" Jenkinsfile Expected behavior: Runs syntax + security + best practices Prints per-phase results and unified summary Returns 0/1/2 per orchestrator rules Example 2: Shared library directory validation SKILL_DIR = "devops-skills-plugin/skills/jenkinsfile-validator" bash " $SKILL_DIR /scripts/validate_shared_library.sh" examples/shared-library Expected behavior: Validates both vars/ and src/ files Aggregates issues with line references Returns 1 when errors are present Example 3: Unknown plugin step follow-up Input step: nexusArtifactUploader artifacts : [ [ ... ] ] , nexusUrl : 'https://nexus.example.com' Flow: Validate locally first. If step behavior is unclear, resolve docs via Context7. If unavailable, use plugin site docs. Report usage guidance and security-safe parameter patterns. Done Criteria The skill usage is complete when all are true: Commands use normalized paths ( $SKILL_DIR/scripts/... ) with no cwd ambiguity. Prerequisites and optional dependencies are explicit. Exit-code semantics and log-severity interpretation are documented. Fallback behavior is defined for missing tools/docs and constrained environments. At least one runnable example exists for full validation and shared-library validation. Reporting format is deterministic and actionable.